Chabot College
Fall 2005
Course Outline for Art 4
ART HISTORY – ANCIENT
Catalog Description:
Art 4 – Art History – Ancient
3 units
History of Western art from prehistoric times through Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Aegean, Greek,
Etruscan, Roman, Early Christian, Byzantine, Medieval, Romanesque and Gothic civilizations. 3
hours.
Prerequisite Skills:
None
Expected Outcomes for Students:
Upon completion of the course the student should be able to:
1. identify works of art by their technical processes;
2. interpret the various ways in which works of art have been used as vehicles of expression;
3. discuss significant art achievements and periods of the ancient Near Eastern and Western
civilizations;
4. explain the artistic influences exerted by these civilizations on each other and our own time.
Course Content:
1. Prehistoric art
a. paleolithic
b. mesolithic
c. neolithic
2. Egyptian art
a. Old Kingdom
b. Middle Kingdom
c. New Kingdom
3. Mesopotamian art
a. Sumerian
b. Akkadian
c. Babylonian
d. Assyrian
e. Persian
4. Aegean art
a. Minoan
b. Cycladic
c. Mycenean
5. Greek art
a. Geometric
b. Archaic
c. Early Classical
d. High Classical
e. Hellenistic
Chabot College
Course Outline for Art 4, Page 2
Fall 2005
Course Content (Cont.)
6. Etruscan
7. Roman
a. the Republic
b. the Empire
8. Early Christian
9. Byzantine
10. Medieval
a. Carolingian
b. Ottonian
11. Romanesque
12. Gothic
Methods of Presentation:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Slide-accompanied lectures
Videos
Large and small group discussion
A museum/gallery/site-specific visit with an appropriate exhibition
Assignments and Methods of Evaluating Student Progress:
1. Typical Assignments
a. Visit the UC Berkeley campus and view the Doe Library. After sketching the elevation
of the building and labeling on the sketch all the visible classical architectural
elements, write a three-page essay in which you answer three questions: 1. How
does this building differ from the original Classical Greek temple it is based on? 2.
Why was this ancient Greek style deemed appropriate for this specific building? 3.
Why was this ancient Greek style deemed appropriate for a modern university?
b. Compile a list of all art- and architecture-related contributions of the Romans.
c. Define the following terms and cite buildings in which they can be found:
Altar
Buttress
Pendentive
Ambulatory
Campanile
Pointed arch
Apse
Choir
Radiating chapels
Basilica
Clerestory
Vault
2. Methods of Evaluating Student Progress:
a. Exams requiring slide identification, short and long essay
b. Papers
c. Final exam
Textbook(s) Typical:
Art History, Marilyn Stokstad, Prentice Hall, 2005
Special Student Materials:
None
DZ g:\Curriculum2005\Art4
Revised: ch 10/27/04